During our conversation, Bill told me a touching story about his friend/neighbor’s son Matt, who was diagnosed this past June with stage 4 cancer. He told me that Matt’s parents are elderly and very dear friends of his, and explained that both of them are pretty frail, and that Matt’s mother had recently been nursed back to health after suffering some serious life-threatening health issues.

Bill went on to explained how Matt and his father Jim (pictured above on the motorcycle) would often see him working on his bikes, and would stop by to say hi. He said that Matt would often talk about getting his motorcycle back in working order, but unfortunately, that never happened.

Matt lived only 21 days after his diagnosis, and after he had passed, Jim gave Matt’s bike to Bill, because they knew he would get it running. Jim, who was a retired Snap-on tools representative, also gave some of Matt’s tools to Bill, including Matt’s favorite ratchet.

While working on the bike, Bill made it a point to use Matt’s tools whenever he could, in order to get the little bike running again. The bike hadn’t run since 1988, but after a lot of hard work, some fine tuning, and a lot of cleaning, Matt’s old bike was brought back to life (see video below).

With the holiday season upon us, and in memory of Matt, we thought this would make a nice story of how faith and the love of motorcycles can bring families even closer together.

About the Motorcycle:The TX-125 was for the 1973 Model Year only. It was a transitional between the MLS Rapido series and the SX-125 series. Its model code is "7A" like the MLS and the SX-125. It has a 2-cycle, single cylinder, 2 stroke 125cc motor, a 5-speed transmission with left side shift, and an oil pump feed with an external oil tank.

Mike is the original founder of Cycle Connections Online Motorcycle Magazine and an avid motorcycle enthusiast. He has been riding for over 40 years, belongs to several local and national motorcycle organizations and travels to numerous rallies and events throughout the US each year. Mike has been a writer and editor for many years and has a passion for sharing his motorcycling experiences and stories with you. Contact Mike at mikes@cycleconnections.com